The Plymouth

This little ginormous beauty is a 1954 Plymouth Belvedere. This is the car I drove in high school.

If the Plymouth ever got into an accident, it would demolish the other car and drive away unscathed. It is a tank.

Original yellow paint. 

I was able to fit A LOT of people into this car. (You've never really played "Corners" until you've played it in the Plymouth squished between five other people, while driving to Los Jalapenos for a bean, rice and cheese burrito, during lunchtime.)

  Sexy new interior. (Which looks almost just like the old interior!)

  

Bench seats. (No, I never made out in this car.  Really!  Mom, dad?  Are you reading this?  I never did.  True story.)  No seat belts.  (Totally legal, because the car is so old.)  

Three on the Tree and no power steering. (My arms were so buff.) The gas gauge didn't work. (I only ran out of gas once!)

Aren't you jealous?  Of course you are.

Today Was a Good Day

Becuase a box was sitting on the doorstep when we got home from having lunch with Luke. 

I ordered them yesterday afternoon and I wasn't expecting them until later this week.

Candywarehouse.com and the Brown Santa (UPS) are my heroes.

Dear Wonka...

...I hate your stinkin' guts.  You make me angry.  You are the scum of the candy world.
Love, Bre-Anna

Wonka did it AGAIN!  They took away another one of my favorite candies.  I have been looking forward to Easter for MONTHS because I thought that I would be able to buy Runts Freckled Eggs.

BOY, WAS I WRONG! 

I swear, Wonka is out to get me.  The company has spies watching me, seeing what candies I like to buy and then they report back to Mr. Willy Wonka himself.  Mr. Wonka then makes sure to stop making said candies in an effort to ruin my life.

Well, Mr. Candy Man, it's WORKING!

Okay, that's a bit dramatic, but I'm pregnant....which is my excuse for any of my outlandish behaviors.

When I couldn't find them myself,  the people who love me (in three different states) took up the challenge and tried to find me Freckled Eggs in the stores where they live, but to no avail.

Today, I was reduced to buying my beloved Easter candy online and paying $4.00 a bag plus shipping. 

When he got home from work and I told him that I just spent $30 on candy, Luke mocked me and grounded me from online shopping.

Seriously Wonka, you and me?...we are so done.  If you want to make up, please send me a very generous supply of Waky Wafers, Tart N' Tinys and Runts Frecked Eggs; only then can we be friends again. 

Vacation (a Little One)

Back in March, I took went on a little 3-day vacation, just me, myself and I...and Maggie because goodness knows I didn't walk all the way to St. George. I had a fabulous time!

I went to Utah because my dear friend, Jill got married.  Now, her first name rhymes with her last name.  Isn't that awesome?!

I love weddings; they are so beautiful and everyone is always so happy! Jill's was extra wonderful. I think that is because I am UBER happy and excited for her to join the ranks of us married women.

In the sealing room, I couldn't help but think back to when Luke and I were married.  Boy-howdy, do I love my man!  I think that sometimes in the hustle and bustle of life, I forget exactly how much I really do love him and in the quiet of the temple, I get reminded.  I am going to sound a little corny here, but it is true - Luke is prefect for me.  He is everything I could have ever wanted or needed.  I am so glad that we can be together forever! 

Sara, who is also my dear friend, went to Jill's wedding, too. 

I am so glad I got to spend some time with her!  Want to know something neat-o? She's going to have two babies about a month after I am to have one. 

Sara, Lindsay (a new friend, who is the genius designer/seamstress behind Jill's adorable wedding dress) and I found this creepy doll in the cab of an old car outside the St. George Temple, so we took a picture. 

We knew that Jill and Ryan were supposed to be chauffeured around in an old car, and we thought this was the one.  Don't worry; it wasn't.

I'm Still Having Nightmares About It

Friday, March 25, started out as a totally normal day but it didn't end that way.

Our family dog, Max, was acting completely normal then all of the sudden he started throwing up.  I will spare you most of the sad details, but I will tell you that Max passed away.  It took no longer than 15 minutes from the time he started throwing up until he took his last breath.  He died in my arms.  I was a bawling, hyperventilating wreck.  I couldn't form complete sentences when I called Doug, but he and Barbie rushed over and then were kind enough to take Max's body away.

Doug works at a veterinary clinic and a nice doctor there did an autopsy.  Max died when a fist-sized tumor on one of his kidneys, ruptured.  We didn't even know he had a tumor; he showed no signs! 
Aslynn was taking a nap when Max died. When she got up from her nap, I was still crying and I told her that Max went to live with Heavenly Father.  

We miss Max.  For about a week and a half after he died, Aslynn would ask where he was.  I would answer her question by asking her the same one, "Where is Max, Z?"  She would tell me, "With Heavenly Father."  Now she just asks when Max is coming back.

I loved having a pet.  I need to have a pet again.  I feel that a lovable, loyal pet is an amazing de-stressor.  Also, I like having someone to talk to, who doesn't talk back.

I am now on the hunt for a new furry family member.  I have my heart on a large dog that is low-shedding.  I am hoping for a Goldendoodle or a Labradoodle.  The problem is, they are very expensive.  I know there are lots of dogs out there in need of a home, so I am looking at rescues and at the animal shelters instead of a breeder. 

I originally asked Luke if I could get a Great Dane but he said "No" because he doesn't want me to have to deal with another dog dying in my arms in the near future. (Great Danes have short lifespans.)  If you hear of any Doodle puppies available in southern California, let me know! 

Rest in peace, Max.  We love you!

Garden 2011

Luke's old garden was broken apart and blown to smithereens by the "ever-so-gentle" desert wind.

(P.S. Last week, we had 30 MPH wind all day with occasional 70 MPH gusts.  I kept the windows and doors shut tight and still I was finding dust inside my house.  Lame-O!)

So this year, we (and by "we" I mean Luke) built a bigger and better garden out of wood instead of PVC pipe.  It is like a giant chicken wire cage!

Here is a glimpse of one of the Saturdays we spent building and prepping the garden. 

*I sat in my rocking chair and supervised.*

I haven't taken any recent pictures of the complete and finished project, but it looks pretty snazzy!  WIND; you have no power here!  The dirt has been mixed and the seeds we planted have even turned into actual living, growing plants!

Oooh, Something Shiny...and Yummy

An embarrassing moment while driving to Palm Springs. 

Bre: talking...probably about nothing of significance.  Suddenly, silent and staring out the window.

Luke:  laughs

Bre:  "What?!"

Luke: "I like how you lost your train of thought and stopped talking as we passed that Chipotle billboard.  You're pathetic!"


If you've ever had a chicken burrito from Chipotle Mexican Grill, you would understand. Trust me. 

Aslynn is a Cute Cheeseball

'Nuff said.

Recipes

For your perusing pleasure, I posted some recipes on the Happiness Is... blog.

Also, I just wanted to tell you, March had 17 full X days.  Sundays could count as full X days, because I don't do anything those days...but I just don't count Sundays.  Sundays are exempt and special.

Food, Glorious Food!

My 87 billion recipes books have been getting the shaft for a couple of years now.  Why?  Because Mr. Internet provides a plethora of wonderful, ever changing recipe books that, for some reason, are more fun browse than an actual book.

Can I get a "WOOT! WOOT!" for food blogs/websites?

WOOT! WOOT!

I have quite the collection of food blogs and food websites (in their own folder in my favorites toolbar for easy access) that I check on a weekly basis (usually on Thursdays while I am watching Off the Map and Modern Family online).  Updates with new recipes make Bre a very happy girl!

Want to see my food blog/website life?

Annie's Eats

Big Red Kitchen

Blog Chef

Clawson Kitchen

Cooking a la Mode

Eat Me, Delicious  - vegetarian

Elly Says Opa!

Favorite Family Recipes

Food, Friends and Fun

For the Love of Cooking

Gourmet Mom on-the-Go

Just Cook Already

King Arthur Flour

Kraft Foods - I have an account on this site and my own "recipe box" where I keep all the recipes find and want to try

Lauren's Latest

Lick the Bowl Good

Life Should be Delicious

Miranda's Recipes

Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Noble Pig

Our Best Bites

Panini Happy

Pink Parsley

Real Mom Kitchen

Sadie's Kitchen Adventures

Smitten Kitchen

Taste and Tell

Tasty Kitchen

The Girl Who Ate Everything

The Open Pantry

The Pioneer Woman

The Sister's Cafe

The Well Fed Newlyweds

Two Peas and Their Pod

What's for Dinner

To keep track of all the new recipes I want to try, I write them down in a spiral notebook; I also write the name of the blog/website I can find the recipe. (Example:  Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup - Lauren's Latest)

I have categories I write the recipes under.  Each page of the notebook is its own category and when I run out of room on that page, I just start a new one.  My categories are:

Appetizer

Beverage

Bread

Breakfast

Chicken

Dip

Fish/Seafood

Ground Beef

Meat

Pasta

Pizza

Potato

Rice

Salad

Sandwich

Sauce

Soup

Tortilla

Treats

Vegetables

This system makes it easy for me to find something for dinner based on what I am in the mood for. 

After I have printed off the recipe and made it, it gets rated on a scale of 1-5.  Anything higher than a 3.5 gets put in a 3-ring binder - with the same categories as the spiral notebook - so I can find it later (Tuesday is Old Favorite night at the Mecham house, remember?).

I love finding new sites!  If you have one that you love, please, share the wealth and let me know about it!